Solving The Problem

Photographing Men

The CreativeLive Courses

I don't know about you, but while I love books and my library is full of them, there is a certain thrill of learning in-person or if that doesn't work with your schedule, going online. It was Jeff Rojas' CreativeLive course, “Men's Portrait Photography,” that inspired me to contact him. Soon I also bought his shorter course, “How To Photograph Men.”

You see, I was working full time at an all-boys prep school in Connecticut and one of the most difficult things you will encounter as a photographer is to posing teenagers. First off, they may give off the vibe that they aren't into it but if you know what you are doing and you can put them at ease, they come alive and are eager to work with you. Jeff Rojas' courses came in handy because I was able to make these young guys look and feel good when they saw the final results. So, I owe it to Jeff Rojas and his courses for elevating my skills.

The Giveaway

If you have scrolled all the way down here, you deserve to be rewarded. But let's make this a game shall we? I have a code for Jeff's Men's Portrait Photography course on CreativeLive to give away to one lucky person who pre-orders his book between tonight and March 3rd. I will announce a winner on my Twitter account, so be sure to follow me there.

Pre-order the book using this link, then email me at seshu (at) tiffinbox (dot) org with your receipt. The subject line of the email should be “Photographing Men by Jeff Rojas – Giveaway”. In your email to me, please include your Twitter ID, so that I can mention it if you win! But the CreativeLive checkout code you see blurred out above will only be emailed to ONE winner. Capiche?

I am the final arbiter of this game. If you do win it's because you followed the simple rules and you are a good sport. Bonus if you leave a comment below telling me why the course would complement the book you just bought.

Ryan Jones quit his corporate job and instinctively knew he had to be come a photographer.

After working at the Fresno Bee as a freelancer and starting a commercial photography business on the west coast, Ryan decided to pull his roots up and move to New York City. He currently lives and works from Brooklyn, New York as both a street photographer and a wedding photographer. I urge you to check out his portfolio and website.

Ryan's work struck me as well-crafted and thoughtful. His photography can be labeled as off-beat or even a bit odd, but his portfolio is full of arresting images of daily life that place you in the scene as if you were actually witnessing it for yourself.

While some of his documentary style could be attributed to his attending the Foundation Workshops, it is Ryan's love for chaos on the streets and making sense of it all that informs his actions. His raw or organic approach to street photography lends itself well to also those commercial clients who seek him out for just that kind of work.

Ryan also curates a blog called An Unlikely Scene. He created it in 2013 and invites other street photographers to submit their work to be considered for inclusion.

The 2012 awardee is no stranger to the business of photography. He runs a successful photography studio in New York City. If you look at his work, I am sure you will be struck by how his wedding photography transcends the obvious. Beyond simply documenting an event, the images are heartfelt and genuine.

His understated but confident presence among his peers, inspires those around him or who have come in contact with him. He teaches other photographers through his blog, Ground Glass, and his workshops, which he unapologetically calls, “I Will Make You Suffer.”

The 2nd Annual Tiffinbox Award goes to Spencer Lum.

Spencer exemplifies this award for being more than an expert photographer. He has a deep and authentic concern for the industry and is willing to chart a course that runs counter to popular trends. While that may make him appear like a maverick, the industry is in great need for revolutionaries like Spencer. Photographers – new or experienced – easily mesmerized by poseurs and “rock stars,” will find that Spencer talks the talk and walks the walk. Read his blog posts or follow him on Twitter and Facebook.

I’ve learned from my 28 years as a photojournalist and the hundreds of stories I’ve covered, how to quickly recognize a big story. It was clear from the start that the Occupy Wall Street movement (OWS) had all the right elements to become huge. Unlike most of my projects, I wouldn’t be traveling to a far off war zone. This story was happening right in my own backyard.

I don’t recall a movement or an event in my career that has struck such a cord with so many Americans. OWS changed the dialogue in America and around the world as well. It successfully brought attention to runaway corporate greed and gave a voice to the working “99 Percent” of us. All of this only a subway stop away from my home in Brooklyn. How could I not pursue this story?

Like so many of my bigger projects over the years, like “The Comfort Women of South Korea”, the Rwandan refugee crisis, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, my own desire to document the story in pictures would be my biggest motivation. To bear witness to history is a common drive among photojournalists. We want to capture actual events as they unfold and to create a visual story. Without this drive, I think it’s almost impossible to produce a meaningful body of work.

I was surprised to see the wide amount of support generated by OWS and enjoyed the creative ways in which they spread their message. Everyday there’d be a protest scheduled for both the opening and the closing bells of the stock market. Complete with the now well known slogans like, “The banks got bailed out, and we got sold out” Often the protestors would use humor, such as dressing up like zombies or taking brooms to Wall Street and pretend to sweep away the greed. I think this strategy hit a cord with Americans and helped to successful brand the movement.

Of course, other times there would be a more serious tone. As when the protesters would play “cat and mouse” with the police, or even outrun them so they could march the streets, free of escorts, as they saw fit. These tactics often ended in arrests.

It was no easy task for the NYPD, probably the biggest and best trained police force in the world. Mayor Bloomberg claims it’s the sixth largest army on the planet! During arrests, police officers would form huge columns which would block what you could see. Frustrating, to know something is happening and not being able to photograph it. They’d also use a technique called “kettling” where people would be locked into a certain area (protesters, journalists, whomever) circled by police. Anyone trying to leave would be arrested. It didn’t matter who you were, once an officer decided to arrest you, there was nothing you could do. Many times the arrests seemed random.

As a freelance photographer, the thought of spending thousands of dollars in legal fees and going through the court system became more of a concern as I spent more time working this story.

The protests were quite physically demanding. There was a lot of running, backwards, forwards, and sideways, during marches that would cover half the length of Manhattan. One day I ended up flat on my back (with another photographer on top of me) after being pushed by a police officer. Luckily I was able to find my glasses so I could continue shooting. Having a few new bruises at the end of the day was common among photographers.

Bruises are better than handcuffs any day!

I was fascinated by how efficiently OWS used social media to communicate with their supporters. They had their own live video streaming team with protesters carrying portable wi-fi enabled webcams. Everything they and the NYPD did was documented and shared almost as it happened. Eventually, I learned to utilize @Yunghi pretty well myself.

Zuccotti Park was another amazing scene. You could see Noble Prize winners, celebrities, average Americans and homeless people all rubbing shoulders and making speeches to one another.

If you had something to say, Zuccotti Park was the place to be!

Overall, this was a lot safer than much of my work. You didn’t have mortars going off or bullets flying around, but, it was often frustrating having to navigate around the NYPD. Still, I think my images stand up well and serve as a visual record of what I experienced and witnessed.

(The text of this post was edited by another incredible photojournalist, Ken Jarecke)

Did you field a camera and attempt to document the Occupy Wall Street protests? Tell us your story in the comments below.

This is an invitation for you to join me and a small group of image makers interested or curious about India. Meet us on the 19th (this Saturday) at the gallery at 10.30 am, to take in the body of work Mr. Rai has created over the last 40 years. We will also meet up for a cup of chai or coffee afterwards. It's essentially a very loosely structured networking event that I want to start doing more often either in New York, Hartford (where I live) or in Boston. If you are interested in photojournalism or documentary photography, you might find kindred spirits among us to trade stories, referrals or more.

Aicon Gallery is located at 35 Great Jones Street, New York, NY 10012. If you are lost, please call 212-725-6092. Take the #6 Subway line to Bleecker Street and walk North on Lafayette Street for two blocks, then a right onto Great Jones Street. Aicon Gallery should be on your right hand side.

So, tell me … are you already a fan of Raghu Rai's work? What can you tell me/us about him? Although I am familiar with some of his work, I know little about the man so I am interested in seeing this exhibit in hopes that it will reveal something about him.

I hope to see many of you there. It would be great to know of a headcount before hand so that there are no surprises. Would you please comment below if you are able to make it? Thank you!

If anyone knows who photographed Mr. Rai in the above photograph, please let me know. I would like to credit the image, if it is still ok to display the image.